Key points from today’s guests:

Sandy Falen, treated for thyroid nodules

• Sandy discovered she had a large thyroid nodule during a routine doctor's visit in October 2021.
• A specialist recommended removing the lump, but Sandy decided to live with it for a while due to lack of availability of an RFA (radiofrequency ablation) procedure in Topeka.
• Her thyroid function was normal, and no symptoms were present, despite the lump's growth over time.
• She came to The University of Kansas Health System to get the procedure done and it was a same-day process.
• Recovery was easy, with mild discomfort that faded quickly, and full results visible within six months.

Dr. Alan Reeves, interventional neuroradiologist, The University of Kansas Health System

• The thyroid gland regulates metabolic functions throughout the body, including the brain, gut, and heart.
• Thyroid nodules are common, with more than 90 percent being benign, and they can develop for various reasons.
• RFA (radiofrequency ablation) for thyroid nodules is a minimally invasive procedure with fewer complications than surgery.
• Patients with non-malignant nodules are candidates for RFA, which can shrink the nodule over time, making it less noticeable or causing less discomfort.
• The technology has only recently become available to be able to target the thyroid gland for this procedure.
• It takes significant technical expertise to perform RFA. As interventional radiologists, we're perfectly suited to do this because we do a lot of these types of procedures all over the whole body. And we’ve done a lot of work with the thyroid gland.

Dr. John Madarang, interventional neuroradiologist, The University of Kansas Health System

• Traditionally, surgery was offered before this RFA technology was available to us. The downsides of having a surgery include healing from an incision across your neck and there are some nerves in that area that we don’t want to have injured.
• If you take out some or most of your thyroid, you may run into hormone problems, not having enough hormones and you'd have to be on a medication for life to bring those hormones back to that normal level and sometimes it can be difficult to replicate what was normally there.
• This RFA procedure includes a specialized needle that can generate heat. This localized heat can essentially kill parts of the nodule.
• We’re shrinking the nodule to a size where it's manageable or where cosmetically it's not making a difference.
• Our first ultrasound check is at six months, and for Sandy, we got a 75 percent volume reduction in six months, which is right sort of where you want to be. I think even over time it may continue to decrease in size.
• RFA has been along around for a long time -- probably 20 years maybe more. It's just the approval to use it in the thyroid has just been recently evolved to be able to treat other exact areas -- solid organs, liver, kidneys. There are many applications for ablation technology and it's not always just heat, it can also be freezing.

Wednesday, April 17 at 8 a.m. is the next Open Mics with Dr. Stites. Migraine reliefe surgery provides freedom from migraines without using a pill, spray, or dru. Join us for this exciting treating and learn who is eligible to get it.

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